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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 300
| I have a mare that has dropped weight and been rather lethargic the last two months. Up here lymes is bad so I had her tested, it was neg. There is a seperate test for anaplasmosis & erlychia which was expensive so I just did a treatment for them and typically you will notice a change within 48 hours. There was no difference. So now I researching anemia. What I am finding is that there is no point in treating for anemia unless you know the source of the problem. Also that horses usually stabilize their levels on their own, and we shouldn't add supplements to their diet to fix this.
Anyone have any insight on anemic horses or things they have done that have helped?
Or any other possible ideas of what it may be that I can look into? I work at the vet clinic where my horse vet works. I have talked to him about this however, he doesn't specialize in horses and doesn't claim to know more than that.
Thanks in advance! |
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 Expert
Posts: 3782
   
Location: Gainesville, TX | Test for EPM |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 300
| Can you tell me briefly what EPM is and how they test for it. I live up north in the sticks and it is unheard of up here. |
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Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | I had one with it. It's basically a bacteria that eats away at their nervous system. It's called Equine Parasitic Myelitis (I think I'm spelling that right). Other animals like opossums and sometimes coons I've heard too are the primary carriers. They poop, it gets onto grass and stuff that the horse eats, and voila. Most horses farther north struggle less with it than here in the South, but if they've been exposed once they can suffer from it and stress usually worsens it. EPM is not the only thing it could be; there are a number of neurological things I'd look for but lethargy was one of the big ways I knew mine had EPM and then some occasional tripping in his backend. Almost all horses test positive through a blood test (i.e. they've been exposed at some point). A spinal tap is the best test but is expensive and dangerous. A lot of people, instead of doing the spinal tap test just treat for it. If the horse gets better they likely had it; if they don't try something else. A lot of the newer treatments are really expensive, but some older ones do get some results. You might try putting your horse on a immune supplement and one of the older oral treatment methods, obviously a vet visit would also be part of this equation. If you get results, then it might be worth it to invest in the newest treatments that are a bit more expensive and more effective. And again, it could be something else but lethargy is a frequent symptom of neurological disorders.
http://www.epmhorse.org/Diagnosis/Symptoms.htm |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 432
| Anemia can be a symptom of ulcers |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 667
| The horse that I just lost became totally emaciated on his top line within 3 days. It was unbelievable how quick it happepened. We did blood work and the vet conclused that it was from Immune Mediated Myositosis (sp??) The immunce system fails and attacks the muscle mass. I was so quick and so dramatic. The vet said its rare. It was very scary |
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Nut Case Expert
Posts: 9305
Location: Tulsa, Ok | Have your vet done the blood work to actually determine if the horse is anemic? The test is quick simple and realtively cheap. Seems like the most obvious step so that you know if you are looking for the cause of anemia or if other diseases need to be considered. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 300
| I did read that ulcers were one of many causes to a horse being anemic. The mare is 4 years old and for the 2 years I have owned her nothing about her lifestyle/training have changed. However, I know better not to rule anything out. And no I don't know she is anemic, I just started researching after the lymes came back neg. The only two things i know for sure is she is much more lethargic, her endurance for how much I ride her is less adn less and she has dropped weight even though I have upped her hay/grain. I am going to pull her blood, however, I have been reading how the RBC can change just by a horse being turned out as opposed to being stalled. I have a call into a larger vet to get some more insight and to see when they feel the best time to pull blood is. I also read how they say you should pull blood multiple times after different circumstances to get an average, but again that will start $$$ up.
I do appreciate all the responses, it helps me be prepared when the vet calls! |
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Fire Ant Peddler
Posts: 2881
| I would have a complete blood panel run. Let your vet evaluate the horse and go from there.
The symptoms of EPM vary so much from horse to horse that it is difficult to say what the definite symptoms are. My horse has such a mild case of EPM that several vets missed it completely. |
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Expert
Posts: 3147
| EIA, equine infectious anemia, is another cause. Has horse had a very recent Coggins' test? |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 300
| All vax and coggins are up to date. The vet I called did suggest a CBC & chemistry and to wait for those results and go from there. I am going to pull her blood tommorow :) I did change my grain program in June/July so she thought a possibilty could be tieing up. However, I know not to jump to any conculsions til those results come back.... |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 415
| I would run a blood panel and do a fecal and see if she is wormy. Neither is expensive. |
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